Dana J. Nelson

Monday

CONCORDIA — Dana J. Nelson, 63, left this earthly life Sunday, May 12, 2019, at Via Christi-St. Francis, Wichita. She was born June 10, 1955, in Pratt to Carl R. and Marvel L. (Gorsky) McGuire.

Dana graduated from WaKeeney High School in 1973. She then attended Fort Hays State University and received a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and later her master’s degree from Kansas State University. She moved in 1978 and began teaching school in Concordia, where she met and married Steve Nelson, June 20, 1987 at The Baptist Church. They resided in Concordia, and she taught elementary school for 36 years until she retired in 2013. Even after retirement, she continued to substitute teach and work as a Title 1 Reading para-professional, where she has been working full time for the past couple years. Her students were her children and she always made it a point to reach out to them, check up on them, and continue to ‘teach’ them long after they were out of her classroom.

Dana was a faithful member of The Baptist Church, Concordia, The Baptist Women, Alpha Sigma Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority, and her very special group, The Pickles. She was also a very proud aunt and took that responsibility as seriously as she did her classroom.

She is survived by her husband, Steve, of Concordia; brothers, R. Gary McGuire (Kim) of Mulvane, and Craig (Sheila) of Hays; several nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews; and a host of other relatives, friends, colleagues, and community members.

But even more importantly are all the children, past and present, whose lives she has forever touched and changed because of the loving care, compassion and desire to teach children that she lived her life with every day.

She was preceded in death by her parents.

Visitation will be from 1-8 p.m. Wednesday, May 15, with family greeting friends from 6-7 at Chaput-Buoy Funeral Home, Concordia.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at The Brown Grand Theatre, Concordia, with burial in Pleasant Hill Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Dana J. Nelson Scholarship Fund, in care of the funeral home.

Online condolences: www.chaputbuoy.com.

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